James McNeill Whistler

Tate Britain

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Press photography of James McNeill Whistler exhibition, Tate Britain, 2026

Press photography of James McNeill Whistler exhibiition, Tate Britain, 2026

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James McNeill Whistler at Tate Britain was the first major European retrospective of the artist’s work in over 30 years, bringing together iconic paintings alongside rarely seen works. The exhibition explored Whistler as a pioneering figure in modern art, known for moving beyond representation to create work rooted in atmosphere, sensation and abstraction.
Nocturne: Blue and Gold – Old Battersea Bridge is one of Whistler’s most iconic works. It was central to the libel trial of 1878, a defining moment in debates around modern art and artistic freedom that reinforced his break from Victorian painting.

Here, Whistler captures the Thames as a hazy, almost abstract scene, punctuated by sparks of fireworks in the sky. That tension between drama and restraint became central to the visual language we developed.

The typographic approach was designed around a soft horizon line dissolving between fog and water, echoing the river at dusk and the tonal subtlety of Whistler’s nocturnes. Glowing, fading type and fine sparks of light layered across the title brought a sense of suspension to the campaign, translating the painting’s luminosity into a contemporary graphic language.
We also created an animated teaser for the exhibition, introducing drifting fog and a soundscape suggestive of a solitary figure walking along the Thames, punctuated by bursts of fireworks that built a sense of anticipation around the show.

Alongside the campaign, we designed the exhibition graphics, including a children’s trail that invited younger visitors to follow Whistler’s butterfly signature through the galleries, a playful reference to the motif he used to sign his work. The exhibition also featured a recreation of The Peacock Room, Whistler’s extraordinary decorative interior that became a symbol of his uncompromising artistic vision following a famous dispute with his patron. Drawing on its rich gilded surfaces, we incorporated gold into the wallpaper design to evoke the room’s immersive atmosphere.

Like Whistler’s painting, the design sought to suggest rather than describe, drawing visitors into the exhibition through light, atmosphere and a sense of mystery.